TL;DR / Key takeaways
- Decide what the property is worth to you before negotiating, using similar homes that have sold and your own financial limits.
- Request the current Property Price Statement, contract of sale and Section 32 vendor statement.
- Consider the whole offer: price, deposit, settlement, inclusions and conditions.
- Choose your opening offer knowing the seller may accept another offer without giving you a second chance.
- Ask what an offer deadline means. A seller's fixed-date process can involve different disclosure requirements.
- Get legal advice on the contract and conditions before signing. Do not assume cooling-off rights will protect every purchase.
- If you have found a property but want help deciding what to offer, Eliza can discuss negotiation support.
Buying a home by private sale can leave you with a difficult question: how much should you offer when you cannot see what anyone else is prepared to pay?
You may have an advertised range, an agent saying there is interest and a home you can already picture yourself living in. What you may not have is enough information to know whether the price makes sense or which terms could expose you to unnecessary risk.
Most buyers do not do this often. You are making an expensive decision while negotiating with someone who handles property sales for a living.
Private sale negotiation becomes more manageable when you have checked the property, assessed the price evidence and decided what you are comfortable agreeing to. The aim is to make a purchase you understand, at a price and on terms you can support.
Your Quick Checklist Before Making an Offer
Before putting a figure to the selling agent, work through these questions:
- Have I reviewed the current Property Price Statement and the sales used to support the advertised price?
- What have genuinely similar homes sold for, and what differences matter?
- What is my purchase budget after allowing for buying costs and likely early expenses?
- Has my conveyancer or solicitor reviewed the contract and Section 32?
- What inspections or further checks do I need?
- What has my lender or broker confirmed, and what remains conditional?
- What price am I prepared to offer, and where will I stop?
- What deposit, settlement date and conditions can I agree to?
- How will offers be handled, and is there a seller's deadline?
- What will I do if the seller rejects my offer or chooses another buyer?
You do not need every answer at the first inspection. You do need to identify the missing information before it becomes a rushed decision.
Start With What You Know About the Property
A price negotiation cannot resolve a question you have not investigated.
A home may appear well priced until you discover substantial repairs, restrictions on planned alterations or owners corporation expenses you had not allowed for. Equally, a home that looks expensive beside another listing may have differences that explain the price.
Request the contract of sale and Section 32 vendor statement early. Have your conveyancer or solicitor review them, and arrange the inspections appropriate to the property. Our guide to due diligence before buying in Victoria explains checks worth considering.
Take the immediate area seriously too. Visit outside the open-home period, consider the trips your household will make and investigate concerns that could affect how you use the home.
The decision is bigger than whether the seller will accept your offer. You need to understand what you are buying.
Check the Price Before Choosing Your Offer
The advertised range is useful information. It does not establish your budget or independently determine the property's value.
Look at similar homes that have recently sold. These are often called comparable sales. Check the differences in land, bedrooms, bathrooms, living space, condition and location before relying on their prices.
A recently renovated home may not tell you much about the immediate costs of an older home needing work. A sale on the other side of the suburb may sit in a different local pocket. Record the differences rather than treating every nearby sale as equal evidence.
What Does the Property Price Statement Tell You?
Victoria's Property Price Statement replaced the former Statement of Information under changes that began in October 2026. It provides price information and details about the similar properties used by the agent. The statement remains a starting point for your own assessment, rather than an independent valuation. Consumer Affairs Victoria explains the changes.
Ask why the selected properties were used, how they differ from the home you are considering and whether more recent sales change the picture.
If you want help getting started with free sources, our free Property Research Masterclass includes lessons on checking price guidance and researching the neighbourhood. It is available whether or not you engage Buy with Eliza.
Separate What You Can Borrow From What You Should Offer
A lender's willingness to lend does not tell you what a particular home is worth.
Start with a total purchase budget. Allow for applicable stamp duty, legal fees, inspections, moving, immediate work and a financial buffer. Then assess what purchase price fits that budget.
If the home needs repairs, investigate their likely cost rather than assuming a small discount will cover them. Your borrowing capacity and comfortable buying budget can be very different figures.
How Much Should You Offer Below the Asking Price?
There is no percentage below asking price that works for every private sale.
An opening offer should reflect the evidence, the property's condition, the seller's expectations and the competition you can establish. A listing that has been available for some time may justify questions about price or buyer feedback, but time on market alone does not prove the seller will accept less.
Ask yourself whether your offer has a reason behind it. Could you explain the price using the property and available sales evidence, rather than simply hoping for a discount?
Hypothetical example: suppose two homes have similar bedroom counts, but one has a renovated kitchen, better parking and fewer immediate maintenance needs. Using that home's sale price without recognising the differences could overstate what you should pay for the other property. The next step is to investigate those differences, not invent a standard deduction for each one.
Should You Leave Room to Negotiate?
Sometimes. You must also be comfortable with the possibility that the seller accepts another offer without coming back to you.
Consumer Affairs Victoria identifies both approaches: making your best offer initially or starting lower with room to negotiate. There is no guaranteed opportunity to increase an offer. Read the private-sale buying guidance.
Decide your opening offer, the price you would be comfortable paying and your final limit before the conversation begins. These figures may be close together. Do not create negotiating room by setting a final limit you cannot afford.
Understand What the Seller Wants From the Terms
Price matters, but the terms can also influence the seller's decision.
Ask about the preferred settlement date, deposit arrangements and inclusions. A settlement date that fits both households may be useful without requiring you to increase the price.
However, flexibility has a cost if it leaves you paying additional rent, arranging temporary accommodation or carrying other expenses. Work out what a proposed concession means for you.
Questions worth asking include:
- What settlement date would suit the seller?
- Which fixtures and appliances are included?
- Are there any specific deposit arrangements being requested?
- Will the seller consider the conditions I need?
- Is there anything about the proposed terms that differs from the contract I have reviewed?
Avoid treating an offer with fewer conditions as automatically better. A finance or inspection condition can serve a specific purpose. Ask your legal adviser about suitable wording and the consequences of changing or removing it.
Put the Offer and Its Limits in Writing
A conversation can establish interest. The written offer needs to make the proposed agreement clear.
In Victoria, buyers commonly make a formal offer by signing the contract of sale. Have the price, conditions, settlement and inclusions checked before signing. Confirm how acceptance will be communicated and when your offer expires.
Consumer Affairs Victoria recommends including an expiry date in the contract. An expiry limits how long your offer remains available; it does not stop the seller considering other buyers. Private-sale offer guidance.
Keep copies of the offer and relevant communications. If the seller proposes changes, have them reviewed rather than assuming a verbal explanation matches the revised document.
What to Do When the Agent Mentions Another Buyer
It is reasonable to ask what stage the other interest has reached. There is a difference between someone attending an inspection, requesting a contract and submitting an offer.
The agent may not be able to disclose confidential details. You may have to decide without knowing another buyer's price or conditions.
Useful questions include:
- Is there another submitted offer, or are you referring to general interest?
- When does the seller intend to decide?
- Is the seller inviting final offers?
- Will buyers have another opportunity to revise their offers?
- Is there a particular term the seller would like me to reconsider?
The selling agent acts for the vendor. That does not make every statement a tactic, but it does mean you need your own basis for deciding what to offer.
You can say, “I understand there is other interest. I need to assess whether any change makes sense for me.”
A genuine competing offer can affect your chance of buying the home. It does not change your financial capacity or remove a property concern.
Responding to a Best and Final Request
If you decide to submit a final offer, make it a figure and set of terms you can stand behind. Do not rely on being invited back.
If you are not ready, explain what information or review is outstanding and ask whether time is available. The seller may choose to proceed with someone else. That possibility deserves consideration, but it should not force you into a commitment you do not understand.
Check What an Offer Deadline Actually Means
There is a difference between an expiry you place on your offer and a seller inviting buyers to submit offers by a set date.
Under Victoria's current rules, a seller's fixed-date process can trigger reserve-price disclosure requirements. Ask the agent to clarify the sale method and relevant documents rather than assuming every non-auction campaign is an ordinary private sale. Consumer Affairs Victoria's industry guidance explains fixed-date sales.
If a deadline is unclear, seek advice before signing. Do not assume a short deadline means you should skip a necessary check.
Understand When You Are Committing
A Victorian private sale is generally sold when both buyer and seller have signed the contract, subject to its terms. A verbal acceptance is not the same as a completed written agreement.
Eligible residential private-sale purchases generally have a three-clear-business-day cooling-off period, with exceptions, including purchases within three clear business days before or after a public auction. Cooling off also carries a cost. Confirm your position with your legal adviser rather than relying on it as a substitute for pre-purchase checks. Consumer Affairs Victoria's cooling-off guidance.
Do not assume finance pre-approval, an inspection booking or an email asking for a review protects you unless the contract provides the protection you need.
Know When to Hold Firm or Walk Away
A rejected offer does not automatically mean you should increase it.
Ask what would justify the change. Have you received useful new evidence? Can the terms be adjusted in a way that suits you? Or are you considering paying more simply to end the uncertainty?
You may decide a higher offer is reasonable. You may also decide the home no longer fits your budget, needs or tolerance for risk.
Keep your unresolved questions visible. If an important document, inspection or explanation remains outstanding, identify what is needed and who can help you assess it.
Finding a home you like matters. So does understanding the commitment well enough to live with the decision afterwards.
Before you make your next move
Found a property but unsure what to offer, how to respond to the agent or which terms to accept?
You do not have to work through those decisions alone. Buy with Eliza'sNegotiation & Auction Support is designed for Melbourne buyers who have already found a property and want independent help before committing.
Eliza can discuss the property, your buying situation and where you would value support. That may mean reviewing price evidence, planning the negotiation or helping you decide when to stop.
Tell Eliza what you are considering and what concerns you. There is no obligation to proceed.
